


Mako's Dialogue and Opinions on Senketsu

by ArgentDandelion



Category: Kill la Kill (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Analysis, Character Analysis, Fanwork Research & Reference Guides, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-04
Updated: 2016-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:34:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21602296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArgentDandelion/pseuds/ArgentDandelion
Summary: A compilation of Mako's dialogue on Senketsu, with interpretations of dialogue.
Relationships: Mankanshoku Mako & Senketsu
Kudos: 4





	Mako's Dialogue and Opinions on Senketsu

(Separate conversations in the same epsiode are indicated by line breaks)

**Episode 4:**

> **Ryuko** : “Hang in there, Senketsu!”
> 
> **Mako** : “Senketsu? What’s that? _[pitying/pitied-bafflement look]_ No way, did you give your uniform a _name_? Boy, you must be _really_ lonely.”

* * *

> **Mako** : “Maiko! Give it back! That’s Ryuko’s uniform, not yours! She needs to have it! ‘Cause when she puts on her uniform, she transforms! Like this! [mimes the skimpiness of Senketsu’s combat mode] She acts all shy, but she really likes it! In fact, she loves when it happens!”

**Episode 5**

> **Mako** : “That’s hilarious, Ryuko! You’re like a comedy duo, but with only one person.”
> 
> **Mako** : “Oh gosh, I’m sorry, you were talking to Senketsu again, weren’t you? My bad.”

* * *

> **Mataro** : “Is anyone else as weirded out about her talking to her uniform as I am?”
> 
> **Barazo** : “Son, the cute ones are always a little crazy.”
> 
> **Sukiyo** : “Poor thing doesn’t have any friends at all, does she?”
> 
> **Mako** : “That’s why her uniform means so much to her. She is kind of weird, but so what? That’s even more reason for us to accept her.”

**Hallelujah Speech:**

> **Mako** : “Ryuko loves her uniform more than anything on the planet! She’s always talking and whisperin’ to it—it’s creepy, but it’s true! In fact, my whole family’s creeped out by it! But it’s cool, 'cause that’s what a person does when they only have one set of clothes. And if you take away the clothes of a person who’s like that, it’s the same as taking away their bestest friend! So give it back, 'cause this uniform—yes, _this uniform is her friend_!!”
> 
> **Tsumugu** : “People and clothing can’t communicate. And they can’t be friends. It’s impossible.”
> 
> **Mako** : “No it’s not! Up until now, the only friends I had were the ones in my head. But then I met Ryuko, and I finally had a real one! So she can be my friend, she can be friends with clothes too! That’s why—it’s not impossible!”
> 
> **Mako** : “Shame on you. You have to take better care of your friend.”

**Episode 6**

> **Mataro** : “What do we do, sis? She’s talking to her clothes like a bag lady again.”
> 
> **Mako** : “Oh, it’s fine. Leave her alone.”

**Episode 8**

> **Mako** : “Ya know, you’re not alone anymore, because now you got us in your life. And by 'us’, I’m talking 'bout Senketsu, and me, and my whole family. We all love you lots and lots. You know we do, right?”

**Episode 13**

> **Aikuro** : “By the way, how’s Ryuko doing with her recovery?”
> 
> **Mako** : “She’s sort of allergic to wearing her uniform.”
> 
> **Aikuro** : “Huh?”
> 
> **Mako** : “After she snapped out of monster mode, she went back to the school. But when she got back home that night, she was all quiet and mopey. She hasn’t put on Senketsu since.”

* * *

> **Mako** : “She and her uniform were glarin’ [glaring] at each other again.”

**Episode 14**

> **Mako** : “Hey! That’s a piece of Senketsu!”

* * *

> **Mako** : “Woah! Senketsu is all chopped up like a salad!”
> 
> **Ryuko** : “Yeah. But I’m gonna [going to] get ('em/him) back to normal. As soon as I find all the pieces, Imma [I’m going to] make him good as new.”
> 
> **Mako** : “Yeah. I know you will. After all, he’s your only uniform.”

* * *

> **Mako** : “You’re so obsessed with getting Senketsu back to normal it’s giving you the strength to kick all this butt!”

**Episode 16**

> **Mako:** “So then…Senketsu is an alien? He’s a sailor uniform…and an alien?!”

**Episode 17**

> **Mako** : [to Ryuko] “You don’t [love Tsumugu] and you know it! That’s why you wear Senketsu all the time! 'Cause you love him the most! Besides, it’d [it would] be gross if you wore him and you didn’t love him! 'Cause he’s alive!”

_\---_

_Note: The following analysis is based on the English dub._

**Episodes 4-5**

**Episode 4**

  * Mako thinks Ryuko gave her uniform a name because she was so lonely.
  * Mako sees Senketsu moving on his own.



**Episode 5**

  * Mako understands that Senketsu is very important to Ryuko (beyond combat purposes).
  * Mako accepts Ryuko treating her uniform like a person (despite being creeped out by it) because she thinks that’s a reasonable thing to do, based on two premises:  

    * Ryuko treats her clothes like a person because she’s very lonely.
    * Ryuko has only one set of clothes, and acting strange towards one’s clothes is understandable, acceptable, “normal” behavior when someone has only one set of clothes.
  * “So she can be friends with clothes too” has an unclear meaning. It could mean “if it’s possible for me to have friends that aren’t alive [the ones in my head], then it’s possible for Ryuko to be friends with things that aren’t alive [clothes] too.” It could also mean, “I’m so desperate for a real friend that it doesn’t matter to me if Ryuko believes she’s friends with clothes”.
  * In the former case, Mako comes to her conclusion through a logical (if cuckoo) process. In the latter case, she’s allowing the strange behavior because she’s desperate (or very accepting of others’ quirks). In either case, Mako (despite not knowing Senketsu is alive) acknowledges Senketsu as Ryuko’s friend.



**Episode 6-13**

  * In episode 6, Mako doesn’t say much about Senketsu. She appears to have the same opinion about Senketsu as she did in episode 5. Her nonchalance could be interpreted as no longer being creeped out by Ryuko talking to Senketsu, though.
  * Mako is mentioning Senketsu without being prompted. Based on context, she’s not including Senketsu to humor Ryuko, but rather genuinely believes it.
  * In episode 13, she seems to slip a little when acknowledging Senketsu as a person. In her dialogue with Mr. Mikisugi, she at first refers to Senketsu as “her [Ryuko’s] uniform”, but then refers to him by name again.
  * Though Senketsu (in his “dormant” form) rarely emotes (and in fact claims he doesn’t have a face), Mako says Ryuko and Senketsu were glaring _at each other_. Normally, saying a person and an inanimate object are “glaring at each other” anthropomorphizes the inanimate object, but in this case the “inanimate object” is actually alive. By saying this, Mako is ascribing facial expressions to Senketsu and implying he has emotional states.



**Episode 14-17**

  * Mako uses “he” when referring to Senketsu. This may be the first time she’s heard Ryuko refer to Senketsu as “he”. Unlike Aikuro, who flips between “he” and “it” when referring to Senketsu depending on who he’s talking to, Mako consistently refers to Senketsu as “he” from this point onward.
  * In Episode 17, she explicitly says Senketsu is alive. (Either she only concluded this by episode 17, or she concluded this earlier and only mentioned it now)
  * In episode 4, she claims Ryuko needs to have Senketsu because she really likes transforming. (Which is true) In episode 5, she says that, due to Ryuko having only one set of clothes, her uniform is her friend. (the conclusion is proven true, but the premise isn’t) In episode 17, Mako says Ryuko wears Senketsu all the time because she “loves him the most”. Her understanding of Ryuko’s relationship with Senketsu progresses from combat utility, to a special relationship (companionship even) caused by insufficiency, to a genuine, deep relationship.



**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on my [Tumblr](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/). Feel free to comment on this article there or here.


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